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☆ Maggie Smith, beloved ‘Downton Abbey’ and ‘Harry Potter’ star, dead at 89
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-27 | by ( Hilary Clarke | Caitlin Danaher | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Dame Maggie Smith, one of Britain’s best-known actresses whose long career ranged from starring opposite Laurence Olivier in “Othello” on stage and screen, to roles in “Harry Potter” and “Downton Abbey,” has died, her sons announced in a statement shared by their publicist Clair Dobbs. “It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith. Everett CollectionSmith was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1990, and from then on was widely known as Dame Maggie Smith. She came to the notice of younger viewers as the strict but fair witchcraft teacher Minerva McGonagall in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” (2001), also appearing in several “Harry Potter” sequels. In her later years, Smith became a role model for ageing gracefully, a process she handled with her customary charm and wit.

Persons: Maggie Smith, Laurence Olivier, “, ”, “ Harry Potter ”, Downton, Clair Dobbs, Dame Maggie Smith, ” Smith, Smith, William Shakespeare’s “, Olivier’s, Miss Jean Brodie, Neil Simon’s, Judith Hearne, Dowager Countess, Everett, Mussolini, Franco Zeffirelli, Minerva McGonagall, “ Harry Potter, Harry Potter, Violet Crawley, Dowager, Robert Stephens –, –, Beverley Cross Organizations: CNN, Chelsea, Westminster Hospital, Oxford University, Oxford Playhouse School, Oxford University Dramatic Society, The Old, British, Acclaim, Atlantic Locations: Ilford, London, Oxford, “, ”, California, British, Florence, Italy, Grantham, “ Downton, Los Angeles

☆ In pictures: Dame Maggie Smith
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-27 | by ( Brook Joyner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Dame Maggie Smith, one of Britain’s best-known actresses on stage and screen, has died, her sons announced in a statement shared by their publicist Clair Dobbs. She was 89. Smith began her acting career on stage in the 1950s and in 1964, she played Desdemona to Laurence Olivier’s Othello, before reprising the role for the film version the following year. She came to the notice of younger viewers as the strict but fair witchcraft teacher Minerva McGonagall in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”, also appearing in several “Harry Potter” sequels. In her later years, Smith became a role model for ageing gracefully, a process she handled with her customary charm and wit.

Persons: Dame Maggie Smith, Clair Dobbs, Smith, Desdemona, Laurence Olivier’s, Miss Jean Brodie, ”, Minerva McGonagall, “ Harry Potter, Harry Potter Locations: “

Three men in South Africa are accused of killing two women and feeding their bodies to pigs on their farm in a case that has outraged the public. The men appeared in court Tuesday in the northern province of Limpopo. Several political parties protested outside Mankweng Magistrates Court, calling for the men to be denied bail and face the harshest possible sentence. The South African Human Rights Commission called on the public not to take the law into their hands in retaliation. Violent crimes on South Africa’s farms have been a concern for years, including the killing of farmers by criminals and farmers’ abuse of workers.

Persons: Zachariah Johannes Olivier, Andrian Rudolph de Wet, William Musora, Locadia Ndlovu, Maria Makgatho Organizations: Zimbabwean, Human Rights Locations: South Africa, Limpopo, Mankweng

☆ Billy Dee Williams says actors should be allowed to wear blackface
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

I love that kind of stuff.”The origins of blackface date back to the minstrel shows of the mid-19th century. You should do it.”“If you’re an actor, you should do anything you want to do,” he said. Williams, who is best known for playing Lando Calrissian in the “Star Wars” franchise, pushed back. I don’t want to do anything based on this whole idea that ‘you’re a Black person, you’re a White person’ and things of that nature,” he said. I’m a creative entity in this life.”In 2019, Williams spoke about embracing the different parts of his character by using gender-fluid pronouns.

Persons: Billy Dee Williams, Bill Maher, Williams, White, Laurence Olivier’s, ”, Olivier, “, Maher, Olivier wouldn’t, ” Williams, Williams “, should’ve, Lando Calrissian, I’m, ’, ’ I’m, “ I’m, ‘ Organizations: CNN, Southern, Smithsonian’s National Museum of, ”, “, Wars, Esquire Locations: Southern United States

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